Your Fittest Year Starts Here!

This customizable new-year-new-you shape-up guide will ensure you make a head-turning comeback—no matter what got you off track
By Lesley Rotchford womenshealth
 

Get Fit for Good

Your Fittest Year Starts Here! // Woman exercising © Tom Schirmacher

Image: Tom Schirmacher

Unlike other vacations, exercise breaks generally last longer than you'd like—and the mementos they come with are ones you'd rather not hang on to. You know how it goes: Two missed workouts snowball into two months of missed workouts, and suddenly you can't button your jeans or do a pushup to save your life. In fact, research shows that body fat, weight, and waist size can rise—and fitness levels can dip—after just a five-week hiatus. (Want to slip back into your skinny jeans? Try these 4 Lower-Body Exercises.)

But 'tis the season of clean slates (appropriately following the season of full plates), so it's the perfect time to make your comeback. Whatever's been keeping you on the sidelines—a hectic holiday season, a hot-and-heavy relationship, an injury, a new baby, or a crazy work schedule—this customizable plan will help you bust your rut and then some. "After falling out of their routine, a lot of people make the mistake of going right back to their previous workout, and then they wake up the next day and can't so much as brush their teeth without a lot of pain," says Joe Dowdell, owner of Peak Performance in New York City. He created a program that has varying break-in periods before escalating the intensity.(Video: Stay on track while at work with these simple tips)

But we know it's not just physical roadblocks; there are psychological and logistical challenges, as well. That's why we also asked experts how to tackle tricky setbacks (see the "Comeback Conundrums.") No matter where you are now, this plan is your road map to a hotter, healthier body.

Learn how to transform your body forever with the NEW Spartacus Workout!

0 Comments
More From womenshealth
Keywords:
Related Content